§ Mr. Ron Lewisasked the Minister of Transport if she will give a general direction to British Railways to ensure that when a railway depot is opened and another one closed there will be no redundancies of any kind.
§ Mr. John MorrisNo. The British Railways Board makes every effort to offer alternative employment to employees rendered surplus to requirements on occasions such as those referred to by my hon. Friend. But any general undertaking that there would be no redundancies of any kind would, by militating against the efficient use of manpower, be contrary to the national interest. The Board has agreed generous redundancy and resettlement arrangements with the unions to take care of those cases where alternative railway employment is not available.